Tri State CART

It was just a little over a year ago when a local organization, Tri State CART, distributed some 28 pallets if Iams pet food to victims of severe storms in Clermont County.

In case you’ve never heard of Tri State CART, it stands for County Animal Response Team. It coordinates, educates and trains volunteers to prepare for and respond to disasters in 31 counties of the Cincinnati Tri-State area.

“Many animal owners will refuse to evacuate if they cannot take their pets or livestock, and that makes our job very important,” said Bonnie Morrison, executive director. “We help people evacuate as quickly as possible with their animals to a safe place until they can return home.”

Why Disaster Animal Response Teams

There were a lot of lessons learned from the tragedies in the Gulf Coast. One of those lessons was that animals must be considered and evacuated to best help save people’s lives.

The PETS Act was instituted in October of 2006, this act was signed into law. It states that all counties and states have to include plans for animals in their emergency response plans. If this is not done, their FEMA funding gets cut off.

In a disaster, Tri-State CART is one of many organizations that respond to the needs of the people and their animals.